ARLINGTON, Texas — José Altuve has played in 101 playoff games. He’s homered in 24 of those games (and 26 times total). He’s been on the field, playing second base, for two World Series final outs that gave the Astros their first and second championships. Despite all his postseason mileage, and against all of his magical – sometimes even controversial – October moments, a new personal favorite rose to the top of Altuve’s list:
Game 5 of the 2023 American League Championship Series.
The Astros trailed the Rangers by two runs in the top of the ninth. Adolis García had just given the Rangers the lead with a thunderous three-run blast. Benches and bullpens had also just emptied after Bryan Abreu hit García with a pitch (more on that later). Friday was about how Altuve, the indescribably talented Altuve, never seems to run out of producing big moments.
With two runners on and no outs against Rangers closer José Leclerc, Altuve parked a three-run home run just above the outstretched arm of Evan Carter in left field. Altuve’s teammates spilled onto the field, some jumping over the dugout railing, others wildly waving their arms and completely losing their minds. Alex Bregman said he lost his voice by screaming so much. Nobody could explain why or how the longest-tenured Astro can, time and again, meet the moment.
In this one, his dramatic three-run home run delivered Houston a stunning 5-4 win over the Rangers on Friday night at Globe Life Field. The Astros clawed all the way back from an 0-2 series deficit to a 3-2 ALCS lead.
“You don’t use the word ‘expect,’ but you anticipate something great happening,” Justin Verlander said of Altuve. “And more often than not, he just seems to deliver.”
Late-inning theatrics made Friday perhaps the most electric game in Houston’s seven-year dynasty since another Game 5 — versus the Dodgers in the 2017 World Series, which was also flipped by an Altuve home run. So, forgive the 33-year-old baseball wonder if his latest feat was his favorite.
“I got to say this one,” Altuve said afterward of his top playoff moment. “Because it just happened and I still have the emotions, the adrenaline in me. Yeah, it was a cool moment, and because we ended up winning.”
Winning is all that has ever mattered to Altuve and these no-quit Astros. But García, the Rangers’ talented outfielder and team-appointed hype man, tried his best to ruin their plans.
The momentum of Game 5 finally shifted in Texas’ favor in the sixth inning, as García lofted a go-ahead three-run home run to left field. García instantly turned to his dugout as he slow-walked to first base. He shouted at his teammates, slammed his bat on the ground with authority, and only then did he start his trot around the bases. He’d just given his club a 4-2 lead in the sixth inning — the Rangers’ first since Game 2.
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